Duplicating machine



June 12, 1934. L. .1. sAur-:R

DUPLICATING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 2, 1932 June l2, 1934. L. J. sAuER DUPLICATING MACHINE Filed March 2, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 12, 1934 1,962,671

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE DUPLICATIN G MACHINE Louis J. Sauer, Oak Park, Ill., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Mary G. Joy

Application March 2, 1932, Serial No. 596,194

18 Claims. (Cl. 101-133) l i This invention relates to copying machines and ing operation. The moistening device is under more particularly to that class of machines cointhe control of the operator and the moisture may monly known as hectographs or duplicating inabe applied at any time and is preferably archines and which are usually provided with a ranged to function simultaneously with the at printing bed over which is stretched a long Winding mechanism, and to be controlled by the 6o 'l and comparatively thin gelatinized band or sheet, same means controlling the operation of the the ends of the band being secured to and wound winding mechanism and the roll retaining upon spools or spindles, which latter are removmeans. ably supported adjacent the ends of the printing A convenient and efficient means is also probed so that by rotating the spools successive vided for raising the table and locking it in 65!T sections of the band may be exposed in operative raised position to provide access to the mcistenposition on the bed. ing device and to other parts of the operating This invention is an improvement in hectcmechanism. graph devices similar to that disclosed and A further object is the provision of an autoclaimed in my copending application Serial No. matic locking means cooperating with the moist- 7c) 457,235, filed May 29, 1930, which application ening device and other operative mechanism discloses a mechanism for supporting and rotatwhereby the moistening device is locked in posiing the spools or spindles to which the ends of tion at all times except when the mechanism and the gelatinized band are secured. In this cothe controlling means is in a predeterminedv pending application the ends of the spindles are position. 75 removably supported in pockets in the side Further objects will be apparent from the frames of the machine and the spindles thereby specification and the appended claims. rotatably mounted adjacent each end of the In the drawings: printing bed and in a position to move the band Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through a over the printing bed when the spools are roduplicating machine embodying my invention 80^l tated. One end of each of the spools may be and is taken on a line corresponding to line releasably engaged by a suitable member forin- 1-1 of Fig. 5; ing a portion of a spindle driving mechanism, Fig. 2 is a somewhat expanded perspective which mechanism is provided with a hand-operview of the mechanism showin in Fig. 1 and ated means for rotating the spools. A manually taken from the outside of themachine in the 35 i operable means is also provided whereby the opposite direction from the view shown in Fig. spools may be engaged or disengaged from the 1, the controlling handle and portions of the driving IneehaniSIn S0 that they may be removed side 'frame being broken away for purposes of from the supporting pockets, or by which the illustration;

driving mechanism may be so controlled that one Fig. 3 is a somewhat expanded view of a por- 963 or the other or both of the spools may be locked tion of the mechanism illustrated in Figs. 1 and against rotation in Opposite directions, and 2, with the cam shaft rotated to a position to without disengagement 0f the SDOOIS, Wheleby cause the moistening device to be effective for the band may be stretched Over the printing bed. moistening the duplicator strip;

The present invention provides an improved Fig, 4 is a, longitudinal section taken on a 95% means whereby the ends of the spindles not line corresponding to line 4 4 of Fig. 5 and engaged by the driving mechanism may be rotatillustrates the spindle retaining mechanism; ably retained in the DOCketS against the tenSiOn Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional View through of the apron. the duplicating machine taken on the line 5-5 A suitable means is also provided whereby the 0f Fig, 1; 10b? roll retaining means may be operated to release Fig. 6 is a perspective View of one of the the spindle simultaneously with the release of spindles cn which the duplicator strip is wound;V the opposite end of the spindle by the driving and mechanism. Fig. '7 is a perspective View of one of the sup- It is also desirable that the vduplicator strip, porting pins 0r studs which are arranged to 10` having the duplicating COmDOSitOn thereOn, support the front ends of both the printing bed should be moistened as it is wound into a roll on and the moistening device.

a spindle. I, therefore, provide a suitable auto- Referringto the drawings in detail, the emmatic means whereby a moistening fluid may be bodiment illustrated comprises spaced side `v applied to the duplicating strip during the Windframes 1 and 2 which may be secured in spaced 11o-` relation by suitable not shown. Rollers 3 and 4 are transverse frame members mounted adjacent the ends of the frames and a bed plate 5 is mounted substantially ush with the top of 5 the frames and in alignment with the rollers and is provided with ears 6 which are pivoted on the pintles 7 of the roller 4, the front end of the bed plate being supported on suitable pins or studs 8 which are secured to the adjacent the roller 3. The

with the pintles side frames ears 6 cooperating 7 therefore provide hinges whereby the bed plate 5 may be raised for inspection of the mechanism filling, removal or thereunder, or for insertion of the moistening device which will be described later.

Cam members 11 are rigidly secured to the shaft l0 whereby movement of the handle 9 to the rear causes the cam gage with and raise the bed members 11 to enplate when the duplicating strip is removed therefrom. The

bed plate may and supported in then be further raised by hand raised position by means of links 12 pivoted to the bed plate at 13 and having slots 12a engaging the shaft 10. In the completely raised position the shaft 10 will be engaged in the upturned porti the bed plate thereby.

ons of the slots and will be releasably supported Pockets 14 and 15 are arranged adjacent the front and rear, respectively, and are angularly disposed ranged to receive the ends 16 and 16a on which a duplicating of each side plate as shown and arof suitable spindles strip 17 is wound. The pockets 14 and 15 are in each side ,iframe Y spindle supporting spindles in alignment with nism. In practice, one duplicating strip or in the pockets l5 at the r and the other spindle, to

at each end of the machine and comprise iianges for locating the the driving mechaof the spindles having a band 17 thereon is dropped ear of the machine which the opposite end of the band is secured, is dropped in the pockets 14 at the front of the machine with the band 17 extending over the printing bed.

The vduplicator strip or band 17 is attached at `each end to one of the spindles and is passed over the rollers 3 and 4 and is arranged to the other by similar to that disclosed the bed plate 5, and

be wound from one spindle to a suitable winding mechanism and claimed in my `previously mentioned copending application, Serial The ends of the spindles may be engaged for driving bylongitudinally movable star-shaped driving members 18 which are indicated by the reference character 24 in the above mentioned co-pending application, their operation and control scribed therein.

As stated above,

being speciiically dethe driving and locking of kthe spindles, and the control therefor, to position the duplicating strip and to retain it snugly stretched over the bed, is completely illustrated and described in the above ing application. However, mechanism therefor is also mentioned co-pendthe manual control illustrated in Figs.

1 and 2 in the present application and will be described herein in connection with certain improvements cooperating therewith and with the winding and stretching mechanism.

The driving of the spindle by Aa suitable hand wheel on 16 is accomplished the driving mechanism, and the driving mechanism is arranged to be engaged and by operation of a handle 19 vverse shaft 2G which is ro disengaged from the spindles secured to a transtatably mounted in the side frames. A double acting cam 21 is secured to the shait 20 and cooperates with a cam rod 22 which latter is slidably mounted on the side frame and is movable by the cam to control the winding and locking mechanism engaging the front spindle 16. An oppositely disposed slidable cam rod 23 is also mounted for simultaneous movement by the cam 21 and controls the operation of the locking and engaging mechanism for controlling the rear spindle 16a. The cam rods 22 and 23 are held in engagement with the cam 21 by means o a spring 24.

All of the mechanism just described is controlled by the operation of the handle 19 on the cam shaft 20, and the cam 21 is so shaped that if the cam handle Isis moved rearwardly the cam rods 22 and 23 will be moved longitudinally a short distance and this longitudinal movement will cause these cam rods to engage ratchet pawls 25 and 26, respectively, to release the winding mechanism for manual operation thereof, whereby the duplicatingV strip 17 may be moved over the printing bed. The spindle engaging members 18 ofthe winding mechanism will still remain engaged with the spindles.

If the handle i9 is moved a short distance toward the front of the machine, the same longitudinal movement of the cam rods will take place and the ratchet pawls will be engaged and the winding mechanism released in the same manner as when the handle is moved rearwardlly, and the same result However, the cam 21 is so shaped that a still further movement of the handle 19 in the same direction, that is, toward the front of the chine, will cause the cam rods to also engage the ends of the bell crank. levers 27 and 28 which control the movement of the spindle engaging members 18, and the spindle engaging members will be moved outwardly, thereby toy release the spindles from the driving mechanism. Thus it will be understood that with a complete rearward movement of the handle the Vpawls only are releasedk so that the spindles may be rotated but they will still be engaged for driving purposes, and the same result is obtained by a partial forward movement of the handle while a complete forward movement disengages both the ratchet locking pawls and the driving members so that in the latter case the spindles may be removed from the pockets 14 and l5.

In the normal operation of the machine, the handle 19 Vis pulled to its extremeforward position to move the engaging membersl 18 to release the spindles for removal or to insert new rolls, and to the rear to release the ratchets only, and the release of the ratchet pawls by a partial forward movement is only incidentalV to this normal operation. However, it has been found desirable to provide means whereby the partial forward movement may be used for the purpose described, if desired. l

The operation of the cam rods and the cam 21 by means of the handle 19, together with the driving mechanism controlled thereby, is completely described in the previously mentioned copending application and it is believed no further description is necessary here.

The roller 3 preferably comprises a tube 29 rotatably supported on a shaft 30 and provided with a roughened or knurled surface to which moisture may be applied and transferred therefrom to the back of the duplicating band 17 during the winding operation. The mechanism for raising the bed plate provides easy access iis to a moistening device locatedthereunder whereby moisture may be applied to the roller 3 and thereby to the duplicating band. The moistening device comprises a tank 3l mounted underneath the bed plate and adjacent the front of the machine, the rear of the tank being supported on suitable brackets 32 secured to the side frames and the forward end being supported on the inwardly extending lug portions 33 of the bed supporting studs 8.

The moistening pan or tank extends substantially the entire width of the machine and is provided with a wick 34 which is constantly urged toward the roller 3 by means of springs 35 engaged between a sheet metal binding strip 35 on the wick and the back wall of the pan 31. In order to control the operation of the Wick 34 and the moistening mechanism, a shaft 37 is oscillatably mounted in the end walls of the tank 31 and is provided with downwardly extending arms 38 which are engaged between lugs 39 on the binding strip 36 of the wick. An arm 40 is secured to the shaft 37 and engages a cam 41 which latter is rigidly secured to the transverse shaft 2D thereby retaining the wick normally out of engagement with the roller 3 when the handle 19 is in the vertical position illustrated in Fig. l, and also during all forward movements of the handle. During all rearward movements of the control handle 19 the arm 40 will be released by the cam 41 and the springs 35 will force the wick 34 forwardly into contact with the roller 3 and moisture will thereby be transferred to the duplicating strip during the winding operation.

It will be understood that the moistening device may be arranged to allow the wick 34 to apply moisture directly to the duplicating band and the roller 3 may then be dispensed with if desired or may be used only for supporting the band.

A similar cam 41a is secured to the opposite end of the shaft 20, as shown in Fig. 5, and pins 42 are secured on each end wall of the moistening pan 3l and each pin is engaged in a cooperating arcuate slot 43 in its corresponding cam. These slots 43 are concentric with the axis of the shaft 20 and are so positioned relative to the pins 42 that when the handle is in the normal upright position, indicated in Fig. l, the moistening pan will be locked in place by the engagement of the pins 42 in the slots 43. Also during any rearward movement of the handle 19, the pan 3l will remain in locked position due to the continued engagement of the pins in the slots. However, a forward movement of the handle to release the spindles will cause the pins 42 to be released from the cam slots and the pan is then unlocked and may be removed from the machine after the bed plate 5 has been raised by the mechanism previously described.

The shape of the spindle supporting pockets 14 and 15- is such that during the winding and stretching operations the spindles normally tend to remain therein, one end of each of the spindles. being interlocked by one of the driving members 18, and in order that the opposite ends of the spindles may not be accidentally displaced a locking or securing device is provided which is located on the side frame 2. This locking device comprises a slide member 44 which is slidably mounted adjacent one end of the shaft 20, the opposite end slidably engaging the screw 45 in an angularly disposed slot 46. A

cam member 47 is secured to the shaft 20 and engages a pin 48 on the slide 44 whereby the slide is normally retained in the position shown and against the tension of a spring 49. The end of the slide member 44 engages against the flange of the pocket l5 and extends adjacent the spindle 16a whereby the spindle may be freely rotated in the pocket but is prevented from accidental displacement.

The spindle 16 in the front pocket 15 is provided with a similar locking slide 50 which latter is slidably mounted on a screw 51 in a horizontal slot 52 and a screw 53 in an angularly disposed slot 54. The slides 44 and 50 are operatively connected by means of a lever 55 pivoted on the side frame whereby any movement of the slide 44 is transmitted to the slide 50 which will therefore be simultaneously operated. The cam 47 is provided with a notch 56 whereby when the handle is moved forwardly to release the spindles the pin 48 will be released from the cam 47 and the slide 44 will be moved by the spring 49 and guided by the angularly disposed slot 46 to the position shown by dotted lines (Fig. 4), thereby releasing the spindle 16a simultaneously with the movement of the slide 44 and the slide 50 will be moved by the mechanism just described to release the forward spindle 16. It is, therefore, obvious that during all rearward movements of the handle 19 the spindles will remain locked in driving relation both by the longitudinally movable driving members 18 and the locking mechanism just described, and when the handle 19 is moved to the forward position both ends of both spindles will be simultaneously released whereby the spindles may be removed from the pockets.

The fact that the arm 40 of the moistening device is not released from the cam 41 during any part of the forward movement of the handle i9 allows the partial forward movement of the handle to be used if desired for allowing the operation of the winding mechanism without applying moisture to the band. This is in some cases desirable.

It will be noted that the winding operation may be accomplished either with or without applying moisture, that is,.a movement f the handle to the rear of the machine will apply moisture during the winding operation, and partial movement toward the front of the machine allows the winding operation to take place without applying moisture, and the complete forward movement of the handle releases all of the spindle retaining and driving mechanism Vwhereby the spindles and gelatine bands may be removed, if desired, and the bed plate 5 may be raised for the removal of the moistening device or for the inspection of the mechanism thereunder.

It will be understood that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I desire, therefore, to be limited only by the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a duplicating machine having a gelatinized band movable over a printing bed, means for moving said band, means for moistening said band, and means cooperating with said moistening means and said moving means for predetermining the relative operation of both of said last named means.

2. In a duplicating machine having a gelatvmovably supported inized band movable over a printing bed, means for moving said band, moistening means movable toward and from said band to apply moisture thereto, and means cooperating With said moving means and said moistening means to predetermine the operation of said moistening means relativeto predetermined operations oi' said moving means.

3'. In a duplicator of the character described the combination With a band Winding and stretching mechanism, of means for moistening a band during the Winding operation, and a single manually operable means for controlling the moistening means relative to said winding and stretching operations, said single means also being operable to control said Winding and stretching operations independently of the operation of said moistening means.

4. A duplicating machine of the character described comprising a bed plate, a duplicating band movably supported on said bed plate and extending beyond the front edge thereof, a band moistener underneath and adjacent the iront edge of said bed plate to apply moisture to said band and normally tending to maintain moisture applying relation thereto, and manually operable means normally pre-venting operation or the moistener and movable to predetermine the movement of said band and to simultaneously control the application of moisture thereto.

5. In a duplicating machine of the characterv described, having means or rotating spindles to wind a duplicating band thereon and detent means to prevent Winding and to allov stretch- ',ing, means for engaging and disengaging said spindles, means for moistening said band during a Winding operation, and a single manual control for all of said operations.

6. In a duplicator having a gelatine band on the printing bed, a spindle adjacent each end of said bed for Winding and stretching said band, means for removably supporting said spindles, means for locking said spindles rotatably in said support, means for automatically moistening said band during the winding operation, and a single means for controlling all of said operations.

7. In a moistener for a duplicating machine 0I" the character described having a manually operable means for controlling the Winding and stretching of a duplicator band, a moistening means supported under said band, said moistening means comprising a stationary tank,V a Wick movable in said tank, and means controlled by said Winding control means to automatically and selectively control the operation of said wick relative to said Winding operation.

8. In a device of the character described the combination With a hectograph machine having a duplicating band movable over a printing bed, a roller adjacent one end of said bed for supporting said band, a moistening means for applying moisture to said roller, said moistening means comprising a Wicli movable to and from said roller, means for supplying moisture to said Wick, and a manually operable means for controlling the movement of said Wick.

9. In a duplicating machine of the character described including a control mechanism for removable band spindles comprising means for engaging each spindle for Winding the band and detent means for each spindle to prevent their rotation in opposite directions, a single means operable to control the detent means only or to control both the detent means and the engaging means to release said spindles for rotation or removal, respectively, and means to moisten said band and controlled simultaneously and selectively by said engaging and detent control.

10. In a duplicator of the character described having a Winding mechanism and manually operable means for controlling the Winding operations, a duplicator band movable by said Winding mechanism, a moistener for applying moisture to said band, said manually operable means being movable in one direction for stretching said band and being movable in the opposite direction for winding said band, and means cooperating With said manual control for causing said moistening means to apply moisture to said band during said Winding operation and means to prevent the moistening during the stretching operation.

l1. In a duplicator construction oi the character described comprising side frames, a bed plate hinged on said side frames, a movable duplicating band on said bed plate, spindle-supporting Ypockets .in said frames adjacent the ends of said bed plate, means for driving said spindles to Wind said band thereon or to stretch the band over the bed plate, a moistening means under said bed plate and arranged to apply moisture tosaid band during the Winding operation, means for locking the spindles in said supports, and a single means for controlling said Winding, stretching, moistening and locking operations, said means also being operable to prevent the moistening operation during the Winding operation.

12. AA duplicating machine of the character described comprising a frame, a movable Vbed plate on said frame, a duplicating band movably and removably supported on said bed plate and extending beyond the ends thereof, a moistener ior said band and removably mounted adjacent one end of said bed plate, means for moving said bed plate to allow the removal oi said moistener when said band is removed, and means for locking said moistener against removal during movement of said band.

13. A duplicating machine of the character described including a bed plate for supporting a duplicating band, rollers adjacent the ends of said bed plate, said bed plate being hingedly mounted substantially on the axis of one of said rollers, manually operable means for raising said bed plate for inspection of the mechanism thereunder, said manual means comprising a handle having a cam associated therewith to partially raise said bed plate, and means for retaining said plate in fully raised position.

14. In a duplicating machine of the character described, the combination of a support, a duplicating band on said support, a driving mechanism for moving said band, means for applying moisture to said band, and means alternatively operable to cause the application of moisture or to disconnect said driving mechanism.

15. A duplicating machine comprising a frame,

a bed plate on said frame, a duplicating bandA on said bed plate, mechanism for moving said band over said plate, means for applying moisture to the back oi said band, and means alternatively operable to cause the application of moisture or to disconnect said driving mechanism.

16. A duplicating machine comprising a frame, a bed plate on said frame, a duplicating band on said bed plate, mechanism for moving said band over said plate, a band supporting and meistening roller adjacent one end of said bed plate, means for supplying moisture to said roller for application to said band, and means alternatively operable to cause the supplying of moisture or to disconnect said driving mechanism.

17. In a duplicator of the character described including a printing bed, a duplicating band on said bed and provided with a Winding spindle, oppositely disposed pockets for removably and rotatably supporting said spindle, a driving mechanism for said spindle, means for locking said spindle in one of said pockets, and means 

